Archive for the ‘#1 Go-To Recipes’ Category
Impossible Pie
This recipe is Amish in origin and I must say, it is delicious, beyond all expectations. All I can say is this is hands down a perfect, quick to throw together pie. I will certainly be making this often.
Ingredients
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- 4 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 7 tablespoons butter, softened, just under 1/2 cup
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F). Grease a pie dish with butter then flour it.
- The flour, sugar, and coconut measured out, the nutmeg is ready for later.
- Liquid ingredients measured out, the milk, eggs, vanilla, and butter. Mix in the dry ingredients.
- Pour the batter into the pie dish and sprinkle the nutmeg onto the pie and the bit of reserved coconut.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until nicely golden brown on top. Remove from oven and let it cool completely, then refrigerate until cold. When the pie comes out of the oven it should be well above the edge of the dish, this is normal.
- When the dish cools, the center will sink in leaving a raised area around the edge of the dish, this is normal.
- Serve and enjoy.
Cheesy Garlic Baked Chicken
Minimal ingredients, and delicious.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup cheese, shredded, Cheddar would be good
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 190 C. Line a baking dish with foil and lightly grease that with butter, makes clean up easier. Place the chicken breasts in the baking dish.
- In a small pan, heat the oil then cook the garlic until tender. Remove from heat and stir in the brown sugar and salt.
- Cover the chicken with 3/4 of the garlic and brown sugar mixture, season with salt and pepper to taste. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, sprinkle the cheese on the chicken and top with the remaining garlic and brown sugar mixture, bake for 10 more minutes or until the cheese is melted.
- Serve with mashed potatoes and a vegetable for a nice meal.
Notes
Low cost.
Provided courtesy of good friend, Stephen Connell.
United States.
United States.
Fisherman's Eggs
I love sardines, and I love eggs, this is a win win right here. I have changed this to reflect using individual Pyrex dishes. I made this on 6 Aug 2017, and it is yummy! This makes a very filling breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Equipment
- Oven
- Baking Dish (1¼ cup size)
Ingredients
- 1 tin sardines in olive oil, (120 g / 4¼ oz), see Step 2, Shortcut
- 1 small shallot, sliced
- fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- black pepper, to taste
- 2 eggs, chicken or duck
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 220°° C (425° F). When the oven is hot, heat a small baking dish for 5 minutes in the oven. I used a Pyrex serving dish, the 1¼ cup size dish.
- For the sardines, use a tin of sardines in olive oil, Ayam brand is the only one I found with oil and is highly recommended. Or use 2-3 pieces of sardines from a homemade batch of sardines. Drain the tin and place the sardines in another small bowl and use a spoon and just break the sardines into chunks. Add the shallot, garlic, and parsley and mix together, season with black pepper as desired.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven, add the sardine mixture to the heated dish and return to the oven for 5-6 minutes.
- Remove the dish from the oven, crack two eggs into a bowl, and slide them into the heated dish, season with salt and pepper to your liking, return the dish to the oven for another 7 minutes or until the whites are set. Remove the dish and place on the counter and cover with a lid for 5 minutes (the eggs will continue to cook, and it needs to cool, can actually let it sit for 10 minutes and you will have hot sardines and eggs).
- Serve with toast for a good breakfast or with a salad for a dinner.
Notes
If using tinned sardines, 1 tin per serving at 59 Baht, this is about $1.74 per serving. If making sardines at home, the cost will only be slightly less due to the cost of the olive oil needed. Not a inexpensive meal but certainly healthy.
Shortcut: Sardines in Olive Oil.
Moist Chocolate Cake (Bread Machine)
Yep, you read that right, cake in a bread machine. This recipe is from the cookbook that came with my bread machine, and I will say it is spot on as chocolate, and moist! No frosting needed! I made this on 4 Apr 2017 and it is excellent! Your bread machine needs a cake function in order to make this. I do use dry weight measurements in grams on a digital scale and liquid measurement in ml, ounces and cup measurement are provided as well.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup butter, room temperature, 3/4 of standard block, (1 1/2 sticks)
- 180 grams sugar, (6.35 oz)
- 200 ml evaporated milk, (.83 cups)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 100 grams all purpose flour, (3.53 oz)
- 50 grams cocoa powder, (1.76 oz)
Instructions
- Place the ingredients into the pan of the bread machine in the order listed, select Cake function, press start. About 1 1/2 hours later, it will be done.
- Remove the pan from the bread machine and set it on the counter to cool for about 30 minutes to an hour. Once it has cooled, get a rack ready on the counter. Now fold up 2-3 paper towels, you are going use hand to hold the top of the cake, while you turn the pan over with your other hand by hold the attachment at the bottom of the pan, gently shake the pan and the cake will drop from the pan and paddle into your hand. Set the pan down, place the rack on the cake and turn the cake and rack over. Now your cake is on the rack and right side up, allow the cake to completely cool.
- Slice, and use a large spatula to pick up and set on plates, or it will fall apart. Top with some whipped cream, enjoy! Here is a slice served with two brownies.
Notes
Low cost.
Recipe from my bread machine cookbook.
Khow Suey (ခေါက်ဆွဲ)
This is a Burmese dish consisting of curried chicken with coconut milk served over Chinese egg noodles as a soup. I made this on 17 Aug 2017, delicious to say the least.
Ingredients
- 600 grams chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces, (1-1 ¼ lbs)
- ½ cup cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced or 1/4 teaspoon powdered
- 1 onion, diced
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground corriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 200 grams egg noodles, (6 ozs)
- 4 cups chicken stock, fresh or from powder
Instructions
- Add the oil to a large deep skillet, heat then add the onion and cook until translucent, then add the garlic and ginger. Cook for a few more minutes, then mix in the cinnamon and add the bay leaves.
- Add the chicken to the pan and cook 8-10 minutes or until it changes color, then add the turmeric, coriander, soy sauce, cumin, chili powder, chicken stock, and bring to a boil.
- Add the corn starch to half a cup of water, and stir that into the pan and reduce heat to a simmer and cook until thickened. Then add the coconut milk. and simmer for 5 minutes.
- While the pan is simmering, boil some water in a pot and cook the egg noodles until tender, and drain.
- To serve, add some egg noodles to a bowl, spoon some curry over the top and top with condiments of your choice, such as a hard boiled egg, Bird's Eye chilies, chopped onion, etc.
Notes
The chicken would cost about 50 Baht/600 grams. For 4 servings, this is about 37 cents per servings.
Variant: In place of the chicken, you can use prawns, fish, pork, or beef.
Sourdough Sandwich Rolls (Bread Machine)
Excellent rolls! This recipe uses a bread machine for the hard work, and you will bake these in the oven. These rolls are large and a perfect softness.
Equipment
- Bread Machine
- Oven
- Baking Sheet
- Aluminum Foil
Ingredients
- 1 cup sourdough starter, Shortcut
- ¾ cup water, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 408 grams bread flour, 3 cups if no scale
- 1½ teaspoons instant yeast
Instructions
- Place ingredients in the bread machine pan in the order specified in your owner's manual. Select dough cycle. Check dough consistency after 5 minutes of kneading. The dough should be in a soft, tacky ball. If it is dry and stiff, add water, ½ to 1 tablespoon at a time. If it is too wet and sticky, add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time. Take out dough when cycle is finished.
- Turn dough onto a floured surface, flour the top, punch down to remove air bubbles. Divide dough into 8 pieces. On lightly floured surface, shape each piece into a smooth ball. Place on a cookie sheet lined with foil and floured. Flatten each ball to 4 inches in diameter. Cover, let rise until indentations remains after touching. If desired, brush with egg wash (combine 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of water) just before baking. Bake in preheated 200° C (390° F) oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from cookie sheet and let cool on a wire rack.
- And with sesame seeds sprinkled on top before baking.
- These are huge rolls!
Notes
In addition to sandwiches and burgers, think bread bowls, scoop out the middle and fill with chowder or a good stew.
Bread bowl idea suggested by good friend, Darhl Thomason, United States.
Shortcut: Sourdough Starter.
Gooey Fudge Brownies
A good friend sent me this recipe, and in my never ending quest to find and test recipes made from scratch, this fits in perfect, and sounds very good, I made these on 4 Apr 2017, and they are GREAT! No electric mixer needed, you can do this easily by hand.
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons instant espresso powder, optional
- chocolate chips, optional to put on the top
Dry Ingredients for use in other recipes, this makes one 'box mix'.
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F). Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter.
- Combine flour, cocoa powder, salt, and instant espresso powder (if using) in a medium bowl and stir to combine.
- Cream together butter, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add in eggs and mix until fully combined. No mixer is needed to do this and it takes just a few minutes with a spoon.
- Then add dry ingredients and mix until batter comes together.
- Pour batter into the greased pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Just before the brownies are done, sprinkle some chocolate chips over the top if desired.
- Remove brownies from oven and let cool at least 10-15 minutes before serving.
- After letting cool, cut into desired serving sizes.
- Serve as is, with ice cream, or whipped cream on top. This photo is 2 brownies and a slice of chocolate cake.
Notes
Low cost per serving for a great dessert.
Used in Recipes Listed on this Site:
- Pecan Pie Brownies. Use the Dry Ingredients only and the remaining ingredients as stated on the other recipe. Made it, GO-TO recipe.
- Orange Kissed Brownies. Prepare this recipe as stated then use at Step 3 in the other recipe. Made it, GO-TO recipe.
Chicken & Dumpling Casserole I
This actually sounds like a chicken cobbler if you can picture that. I made this on 2 Apr 2017 and it is very good. This takes some time but the results are delicious. The baking dish will be full almost to the top before you put it in the oven. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 1 kilo chicken, see Step 1
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, OR make from a shortcut
- 2 cups chicken broth, see Step 4
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- The chicken can be anything you like, breasts, thighs, legs and thighs. My personal opinion would be thighs, lots of flavor in thighs. Use bone in and skin on chicken.
- Place the chicken in a pot and cover with water. Cover and cook on medium heat for 1 hour or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from heat and let this cool to room temperature, this ensures juicy chicken.
- Once the pot has cooled to room temperature, preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F).
- Remove the chicken from the pot. Strain the liquid and reserve, there is your broth to use.
- Remove the skin and bones, and any cartilage and shred the chicken use large forks. If making the soup from a shortcut, reserve about 2-3 tablespoons of chicken and dice that up and set aside, use that for the soup shortcut. Place the shredded chicken in a 7x11 baking dish, spread the chicken out to make a even layer.
- Whisk together the flour, milk, and butter, pour over the chicken. Do not stir.
- Whisk together the broth, soup, salt and pepper, pour over the casserole, Do not stir.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the top starts to brown up a bit. All ovens are different, so you may have to bake longer or shorter. Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving. Enjoy.
Notes
Chicken is low cost, using quarters, legs, thighs, or breasts will all cost on average, 65 Baht/kilo. For 6 servings, this is about 32 cents per serving.
Shortcut: Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup.
Provided courtesy of good friends, Stephen Connell & Angie Davis Williams.
United States.
United States.
Light Rye Bread (Bread Machine)
Perfect light rye bread, not a dense rye. This makes a 750 gram (1½ lb) loaf.
Equipment
- Bread Machine
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 2½ teaspoons caraway seeds
- 272 grams bread flour, 2 cups if no scale
- 102 grams rye flour, 1 cup if no scale
- 1½ teaspoons yeast
Instructions
- Add the ingredients in the order listed into your bread machine, select basic bread, loaf size 750 grams (1½ lb), medium crust, press start. This will take about 3 hours.
- When the machine has completed the baking cycle, turn out onto a rack to cool, allow to cool 15-30 minutes minimum before slicing.
- Sliced and ready for some Grilled Salami & Cheese Sandwiches.
Bean & Bacon Soup
I love a good bean soup, and a bean soup with bacon, even better. I have modified this to use a slow cooker.
Ingredients
- 500 grams dry Great Northern beans
- 4 cups chicken stock, fresh or from powder
- 300-500 grams smoked bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 carrot, diced
- 1 handful celery, about 5-6 bunches, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- black pepper, to taste
- dried parsley, to taste
Instructions
- Sort the beans and discard bad beans or debris, rinse and place in a large bowl that has a lid, cover with water by about 2 inches, cover and place in the fridge overnight.
- Next day, drain the beans, quick rinse and place in the slow cooker. And the chicken stock and set the slow cooker to High setting.
- Fry the bacon in a pan until just crispy, remove from the pan, briefly drain on a paper towel, then add to the slow cooker. You can reserve some of the bacon to garnish the top of each bowl if desired. This photo shows I am using 1/2 package of store bought Thai brand bacon, and 4 slices of thick cut German smoked bacon.
- Pour the bacon fat into a jar for use in later, like frying eggs, potatoes, etc but do not wipe out the pan, now add the veggies to the pan and cook those for 4-5 minutes or until starting to soften, then stir in the tomato paste, cook for another minute or two, then add this mixture to the slow cooker. Add the bay leaves and stir to mix everything together. Cover.
- Continue to cook on High for a total of 3 hours, then switch to Low setting for 3 hours. Perfect consistency.
- Remove the bay leaves, stir in some dried parsley and serve. Top with the reserved bacon for garnish if desired and sprinkle some dried parsley on as well.
Notes
Only item expensive here would be the smoked bacon, a good brand is TGM, this would be about 130 Baht/200 gram package, 2 packages would be 260 Baht. For 8 servings, this is about 95 cents per serving, good value!
Variants: 1. Prior to serving, add 2-3 chopped plum tomatoes and stir those in. 2. Add macaroni for a kind of pasta fagioli to get more meals from this.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Adding pasta inspired by good friend, Edward Coleman.
Philippines.
Philippines.
